Top 7 Reasons why Small Business Owners Fail Within the First 5 Years

They feel their business challenges are so unique compared to everybody else’s that nobody can relate to their problems. Therefore, they never share with anyone the challenges they go through, when the answers are often right in front of their face. But because of their inherent desire to be unique, they won’t accept solutions from other people who have already fixed something similar.Stop thinking you’re so special. I mean, you are special, just not that special. #OthersHaveComeBeforeYou

They ask their spouse for advice/permission to purchase things for the business when their spouse doesn’t even work in the business. Unless your spouse is a business partner or key employee, he or she should have no say in the financials of the company. This ‘check with my spouse mentality’ is usually a sign that the financials of the business are being mishandled, and the owner just keeps what’s left over each month to provide for their family. When the spouse is asked about investments in a business they have no experience and limited knowledge in, their self-preservation instincts will kick in and realize if they say no to the opportunity it puts more money in their personal bank account.Stop asking your spouse about financial decisions in the business, or make them a business parter so they have a vested interest in the investments.

They think being “too busy” is something to be proud of. So they put an unnecessarily high burden of responsibility on their shoulders to get everything done themselves. Or, if they have delegated responsibilities to others, they continually butt in so they feel like they always have something to do. The best CEOs have the ability and create the opportunity to not do anything, but sit back and reflect.Stop acting like you’re so damn busy all the time. You’re not as busy as you tell people you are anyway, and if you really are, then you just don’t know how to prioritize very well.

They think “now is not the right time“ is a perfectly good reason for not doing something. It’s usually bullshit. Some of the most accomplished and rewarded people in history weren’t ‘ready’ to embark on their journeys. Some of the best lessons in the world someone can receive happen as a result of a mistake they make during the process, and they would have never got the lesson if they waited for it before actually going for it.Most things in life you don’t feel prepared for until you actually suck it up and go out and do it. If you wait for the right time, you’ll never get anything done. #JustDoIt

They feel things need to be perfect before they launch them. And because things are never perfect, their product or service never gets launched. Then their competitors launch an inferior product and make all the money, and they get butt hurt claiming “but my product is so much better!” You know what? It’s really not, because as far as their target market is concerned, it doesn’t exist.Stop chasing perfection, settle for excellence and get shit done. #GSD

They don’t pay themselves. They somehow think that they’ll pay themselves once they make more money; but that’s rarely the case. Because no matter how much money a company makes, it can always find a use for that money. So when business owners put themselves as the last person to get paid, they usually become the person who never gets paid. This leads to burn out; and burning out leads to poor decision-making skills. Poor decision-making skills lead to the destruction of your company.Pay yourself first. And while you’re at it, determine your profit upfront and set that aside before the bills are paid. To learn more about that concept read Profit First by Mike Michalowicz

They think nobody can do what do as well as they do it,so they never hire people to do the most basic of functional tasks. This means they end up working way below their pay grade and choking the growth of their company.Stop doing functional tasks, focus on the vital, and hire people to do the rest.